Flaming Raven
by Grand High Idol
Summary: Very slight AU. After landing in the Null Void, Kevin is discovered by a group of scientists who manage to restore his human form...but the demons of the past will never go away. Rated for future chapters. [Prologue posted, more to follow]


"_Nice job, Squidhead. You blew it for _both_ of us!"_

_Vilgax shot a furious glare at the mutant boy perched on the ledge above him, but the only response he received was a hideous rumbling, followed by an earsplitting roar. The two quickly looked down in time to see a gigantic worm-beast emerging from the never-ending tunnel below them, its mouth open and its salivated fangs exposed._

Fuck!

_Thinking quickly, the two began their ascent upward, Vilgax quickly and nimbly jumping and climbing over the crumbling ledges, the other flying. The worm-beast quickly closed on them, its jaw still wide open, revealing the ugly passage that led down its throat…_

"_GYAAHHH!"_

_With a final cry, the raven-haired mutant emerged, landing out of harm's way just as the creature, with a deafening roar, surfaced, the countless segments of its body trailing by like a vertical train. The mutant looked around, searching for any sign of Vilgax, but there was none. Son of a bitch must've gotten himself eaten._

_Well, that was fine with him._

_Panting, he searched around for any signs of danger, then slowly and shakily got to his feet. He felt weak all of a sudden, not knowing why, but it was killing him. His head was spinning with all sorts of strange flashes, strange images, and his head was pounding. Groaning, he clutched his head, trying to keep it under control—this wasn't the first time it had happened._

_But this time, including the initial shock, it was too much. Giving a final gasp, his legs collapsed underneath him and he fell, hitting the dusty ground with a deafening _THUD. _Blackness, like a spotted curtain, closed upon him, and with a final sigh he lay still._

* * *

"Orion, Percipus, get over here! I found something!" 

The two creatures in the white coats stopped what they were doing, turning their attention toward their third comrade, who was currently squatting near a large body, a body of what appeared to be a freak-accident gone horribly wrong. Intrigued, they quickly ran down toward the still form, then halted at its side. Percipus, a strange creature with pale-white snakeskin and catlike ears, tilted his head, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"Astounding," he finally breathed. "I've never seen anything like it before in my life."

"What do you think it is?" The third looked up toward Percipus, as if expecting an immediate answer, but all Percipus could do was shrug.

"I haven't the faintest clue," he replied somberly. "It looks like the wretched spawn of several different creatures, but that's a scientific impossibility. However, what I'm most intrigued by is…" He paused to bend down and brush a lock of raven-colored hair out of the creature's eyes. "The hair. It looks like the hair of a…" He licked his lips thoughtfully. "…A human."

The other two looked at each other, then back at Percipus. "A…a human?" Orion replied, cocking his head. "I…I'm not sure I understand. We haven't had a human down here in—"

"Years, I know," Percipus replied, turning his back. "But what if there's the possibility—the _slightest_ possibility—that this creature was, indeed, a human at one point? Judging by how young its features are, it can't be more than thirteen or fourteen years old."

Orion and the other looked down at the body, as if lost in thought. Finally, Orion turned his head upward in Percipus's direction. "So, are you saying that we should take it back to the lab?"

Percipus paused for only the slightest second before delivering his response. "Yes. In order to prove my theory we have to run some tests on it. With luck, we just might be able to revert it back to its true form—if it is, indeed, a mutant."

The two stood up, Orion delivering a nod in the process. "Alright," he responded, "we'll get the spacecraft. But Percipus—"

"Hmm?"

Orion paused for a moment before finally breathing, "You'd _better_ be right this time."


End file.
